Energetic compounds having a high nitrogen content are employed as ingredients of solid propellants for guns and rockets. Such compounds do not contribute to smoke and flash and their main combustion product is nitrogen, an extremely stable molecule showing little tendency to react even at the high temperatures generated in gun tubes. Propellant compounds, which yield combustion products rich in nitrogen, are further advantageous in that they cause less gun erosion than compounds giving the same flame temperature but of lower nitrogen content.
Compounds of high nitrogen content can be produced by introduction of the azide group into the molecule. Azide compounds are of interest, since they (1) provide good impetus, (2) yield low flame temperatures, (3) produce less flash, (4) accelerate the burn rate, and (5) can possess good thermal and chemical stability.